William h



(No Model.)

' W. H. THOMPSON.

SAFETY LOCKING GUARD FOR HATS, &c. No. 452,682. Patented May 19, 1891.

WITNESSES: k WJjQl/ENTOR:

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ATT JRNEYS ma Moms versus co, wommmm, mum 1 n I hat.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

VVI LLIAM H. THOMPSON, XVINNIPEG, CANADA.

SAFETY LOCKING-GUARD FOR HATS, &cC.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 452,682, dated May 19,1891.

Application filed June 20,1890. Serial No. 356,173. (No model.)

To all 101 20777, it may concern.-

Be it known that I, WILLIAM H. THOMP- SON, residing at \Vinnipeg,Manitoba, Canada, have invented a new and useful Safety Locking-Guardfor Hats, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to a guard which is in the nature of acombination-lock, and which is adapted to be secured to a hat in such amanner that when adjusted in its locked position it will prevent placingof the hat upon the head, and it also forms a convenient means forattaching a holding-chain to the It is further adapted for use inconnection with the ordinary spring lock or clasp of valises,portmanteaus, and the like.

The objects of my invention are, first, to provide a combination-lock ofthe character described that can be opened bythe sense of feeling,independent of the sense of sight, or by the sense of sight, as in thecase of ordinary combination-locks; second, to provide means for theadjustment of this look in hats with a view of preventing mistakes as toownership, and, third, to provide means for the attachment of hats toovercoats or other obects. i

To this end my invention consists in pro viding a base plate or frameadapted to be secured to the inside of a hat and providing a hingedfinger adapted to be held thereto and projecting slightly inward fromthe hatbody, so as to form a projection which will come into contactwith and prevent the hat being placed upon the head when in lockedposition, said finger also being adapted to hold one end of a chain orcord the free end of which may be secured to the overcoat of the weareror other object, and in providing suitably-arranged locking-slides, twoor more in number, which can be arranged for different degrees ofmovement relative to each other before said hinged finger can beunlocked.

My invention further consists in the novel arrangement and peculiarcombination of parts, all of which will hereinafter be fully describedin the annexed specification and particularly pointed out in the claims,reference being bad to the accompanying drawings, in which Figure 1 isperspective View of a hat with my improvement applied. Fig. 2 is asection the plate A and are riveted, as shown.

on the line 2 2, Fig; 1. Fig. 3 is aperspective view of the device withthe parts in their unlocked position. Fig. 4 is a front face View of thedevice with the locking-finger shown detached. Fig. 5 is a rear faceview thereof. .Fig. 5 is a section on the line a a of '-Fig. 5. Fig. 6illustrates the device as'in use, showing the hat connected with anovercoat.

In the accompanying drawings, in which the same reference-marks indicatelike parts in all the figures, A denotes the base-plate, which issecured by the prongs a a, which pass through the hat at a point back ofthe band, as shown, or by any other suitable means.

B denotes a cap-plate or housing secured to the extension a of the plateA, preferably by forming four prongs b, which pass through The upper endof the cap is formed with ears I) 1), between which is tightly hinged(to prevent its dropping down) a guard-finger or dart C, said cap beingalso provided with two recesses b b in its opposite edges, whichregister with apertures a a in the plate A. The finger or dart .C isprovided with two lips, turned first downward at right angles to thebody and then inward, as at 0, parallel therewith, forminglocking-prongs which are arranged to pass down through the recesses Z)and-the apertures a D D indicate two slides held for independentmovement in the cap or housing B, formed with turned-up ends 61 (Z, sothey can be easily pulled outward, their opposite ends being formed withprojections d d to prevent the slides being entirely withdrawn from thecapplate. Each of the slides is provided with a recess d on its outeredge, of a size sufficiently large to permit the prongs c passingtherethrough. By reference to the drawings it will be seen that therecesses d in the slides are located at different points therein, andthat I provide the lower faces of said slides with a series of notches(1 preferably of equal numbers, with which engage spring-fingers a astamped up from the body of the plate A. By this construction it will beseen that by the sense of feeling a person can pull the slides out therequired distance, each partial movement being indicated by the shortclicks and stopof the slides. Thus, should the re cess (Z in one of theslides be so disposed that an outward movement of the said slide to theextent of five notches be necessary to bring said recess (1 in line withthe aperture a, and 5 the movement of the adjacent slide be the distanceof three notches, the operator can readily tell when the slides havebeen properly adjusted, so as to permit the hinged finger being swungopen. The finger O is also formed to with a loop portion 0, which fitsovera headed pin E, secured to one end of a chain, the opposite end ofwhich is formed with a ring c, whereby it may be readily looped into thebutton-hole of an overcoat, as shown in Fig.

6, or secured to any other object.

My improved device is exceedingly simple in construction and can readilybe adapted for various uses.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim, and desire to secureby Letters Patent, is

1. In a lock-guard for the purpose described, the combination of thebase-plate A, adapted to be secured to the hat, ahinged dart orguard-finger arranged to project over the opening in the hat, and alocking device secured to the base-plate, arranged to engage the dartand hold it in engagement with the body when in its operative position,substan- 3o tially as and for the purpose described.

2. In a lock-guard for hats, the combination of a base-plate arranged tobe secured to the inside of a hat, a dart or guard-finger hinged at itsupper end to the base-plate and provided with projections, and acombinationlock device formed on the said base-plate, with which theprojections on the guard-finger are adapted to engage when the said finger is in its operative position, substantially as and for the purposedescribed.

A lock-guard for hats, consisting of a base-plate adapted to be securedto the inside of a hat, a guard-finger hinged at its upper end to theplate, its body portion arranged to fold down against said plate, itslower end curved outward over the opening in the hat, and acombination-lock formed on the baseplate, with which said guard-fingeris adapted to engage and be locked thereby when folded 5 down againstthe body or base-plate, substantially as and for the purpose described.

l. The combination, with the body portion A, adapted to be secured tothe inside of a hat, and a housing formed thereon, of the dart or fingerO, hinged to the said housing, a holding chain or cord having aretainingbolt E, and a permutation locking device arranged to lock saidbolt between the finger and the body portion and the said finger C tothe body portion, substantially as and for the purpose described.

5. A locking-guard for hats, consisting of a base-plate adapted to besecured to the hat, a housing or cap-piece held thereon, aperturesformed in said plates and cap-piece, lockingslides held for independentmovement in said housing, formed with recesses in their outer edges, anda hinged guard-finger or dart provided with depending lugs havinginturned prongs c, said lugs adapted to pass through said apertures inthe cap-piece and baseplate, the prongs 0 thereof adapted to projectunder the slides and be held locked thereby, the lower end of saidfinger projected inward, substantially as and for the purpose described.

G. The combination, with the base-plate A, formed with the apertures a aand the spring-tongues a the cap-piece B, having recesses b bregistering with the apertures a and the hinged guard-finger or dartformed with inwardly-projecting lugs having inturned prongs c, of thelocking-slides D, held for independent movement in said housing andformed with recesses d d in their outer edges or inner edges, as thecase may require, and

with a series of notches on their under face adapted to be engaged bythe tongues, sub stantially as and for the purpose described.

7. In a device for the purpose described, the combination, with thebase-plate A, adapted to be secured to the hat, a guard-finger or darthinged to the base-plate, formed with loop portion 0, of a holding-chainformed with a headed bolt adapted to seat between said socket and thebase-plate when the dart is locked, and means for holding the hingedfinger in locked position, substantially as shown and described.

WILLIAM H. THOMPSON.

Witnesses:

ISAAC CAMPBELL, BASIL H. LLOYD.

